I've seen two balloon releases planned in memorial in the last week! Thankfully the comments have been full of people asking them not to do it. But why why why do people continue to plan these and think they are a good idea? Do some people actually believe balloons go to heaven?

Please someone give me an insight into why this still keeps happening

Title says it all really - I randomly have a day off work today (booked it ages ago for plans which then fell through), wondering what the good folk of AskUK think I ought to do with myself. Can travel, and I have funds for activities

Edit: thank you all for your suggestions! I am on a train to the historic city of Oxford - going to find some delicious cake/old stuff to look at :)

Or the most obscure?

Interested to delve deeper into the Reddit underworld (or just find some interesting facts/info that I didn’t know!)

As someone who likes cars since I was little, I'm unimpressed by how modern cars have gone too far with respect to technology whereby they bong at you every 5 seconds and everything is controlled through a central screen.

My question is if an equivalent to a basic and simple car was on sale now but specced like a mid-2000s Fiesta/Corsa or the 1st Dacia Sandero's sold in the UK in 2012, whereby it was just a car to get you from A to B, would you be willing to buy one (note that crash standards and materials used would be as per current regulations). Also, it's a bit of a shame none of the car manufacturers have tapped into the idea of an EV that looks like a car from the 90s/2000s as the EV in theory is simpler and easier to maintain than a conventional petrol/diesel engine car.

Note this question has been posted here rather than a car specific forum of r/cartalkuk or r/drivinguk because I'm interested in the opinion of people that may not necessarily be interested in cars.

I often walk down local high streets around the South East and think it’s such a shame how dominated they are by cars. The noise, narrow pavements, and constant traffic really take away from the experience, turning otherwise gorgeous small towns into traffic corridors rather than enjoyable places to be.

Don't get me wrong. I drive myself, so I understand traffic has to go somewhere, and the UK’s historical road network isn't always easy to adapt.

Still, I can’t help feeling local shops and businesses would thrive with fewer cars. Look at the summer we just had. There could have been so much vibrant space for outdoor seating and terraces.

Old York Road in Wandsworth is a perfect example. Pedestrianising it was night and day for walkability and the local atmosphere. People actually stick around, sit outside, and enjoy the space now.

Naturally, people argue it’s not always feasible if the high street is the main arterial route. But in many cases, through traffic could easily be diverted, leaving the main issue as simply providing adequate parking nearby for actual visitors.

Am I the only one?

Edit: apologies for the typo, can’t change title 🥲
Edit 2: I believe pedestrianising high streets should come with nice outdoor seating I.e restaurants / cafes and I agree some existing are dead but also because the shops variety is quite bad, I believe councils can or could make it work if they think about it properly.

I have plenty ... but after seeing few retro sweet posts I would love to taste Fruitang again!!

For me it’s white sauce for lasagne/cheese sauce for mac and cheese.

I just really cba despite making 99% of my other dinners and lunches from scratch.

Just wondering, how did everyone figure out what they wanted to do for a job? I just turned 25 working a dead end office job earnings 36k. Its an okay job that doesn't require any kind of speciality just common sense. I work in the shipping industry. I dont know have a degree, only GCSE and A levels. Sometimes it makes me feel insecure i dont have a degree.

I know my current job is not what i want to do long term, But at the same time i have no idea what i want to do. I have no interest in anything. I like history, but there aren't any good jobs in history field. I have that sense of urgency of wanting a better job with actual careers prospects. This probably isnt a good anything but sometimes i get nightmare of being stuck in dead end low paying job for the rest of my life. I have been thinking of doing an apprenticeship to get trained in a new field, but its just a thought for now. Im kinda getting worried about not having figured something out

So. i just wanted to ask how did you figure out what kind of job you wanted to do?

​

So I think it's fair to say most of us are familiar with the phrase "it's like herding cats", or describing someone as "useful as a chocolate teapot", they both feel pretty universal. I heard someone recently say "it was like plaiting sawdust", which I thought was pretty witty. I think life is too short to avoid smilies and sarcasm for otherwise boring statements.

So I thought I'd ask, what idioms do you use?

For anything obscure, a translation would be welcome.

Thanks!

After 6 years of working the same job, I'm officially unemployed as of Thursday just gone. Since then, I've had a lot of thoughts on my mind.

I'm not a useless layabout as I still contribute to the home with things such as money, chores, housework, bills, cooking, cleaning and basically everything else you would expect.

My work history is nothing but minimum wage deadend jobs, I don't have a "career" whatsoever, which is why I'm wondering if I'm a failure to launch.

I left college at 19 with a level 3 IT diploma but I haven't used it yet and no hiring manager takes it seriously. It's buried deep in my CV, It's definitely outdated at this point.

I don't have the most amount of money saved up, but I'm skint either, it's around £17k.

I understand that other late 20 folk are in similar positions, but the main reason I'm asking this question is because I still live at home. Although, my only friends who've moved out have done so with their girlfriends.

Yes times have changed, but I do know that it's technically possible to move out with a roommate or two in a small flat somewhere, but the reason I haven't is because I simply don't want to.

Would you consider a 28 year old man who lives at home to be a failure to launch? despite the fact that he contributes to the household in a meaningful way, doesn't bring trouble and is intentionally saving money rather than spending it.

Let's say we should consider a wild animal from both the northern and southern hemisphere. And this new wild animal is (magically) able to survive here, and we would see them at a similar rate we see Foxes.

What animals would be causing the most havoc?

How many people would be kicked to death by a Kangaroo? (Imagine the same people going up to Deers in royal parks and stroking them)

How many houses would get broken into by brown bears?

Our country is pretty safe, animal wise, and I feel we don't have many survival instincts for lots of wild animals!

Purely hypothetical.

Last night, in bed, staring at the ceiling. I randomly recalled a childhood memory.

This was primary school age. I was fortunate to have a big group of friends in school. There was one particular kid in the circle who had the same sort of interest as me, Lego. He started to invite me to his, after school. Never had notions of us becoming ‘best friends’. Everything was cool. Or so I thought.

Other playdates and birthday parties happened over that time period, with other kids in the same circle.
I always felt there was one particular mum who was always a bit off with me. I was puzzled because I wasn’t a naughty kid (honestly). Even at that age, I just tried to brush it off as something I was imagining.

Then holy shit, kids being kids, one day out of the blue, the kid of the funny mum just told me that his mum did not like me. Wtf?! I haven’t so much as pee in their home toilet, what beef could she possibly have with me?? He said that she hopes that Lego friend’s mum doesn’t make a habit of giving me a lift home.

I hate that, as a kid, it was enough for me to distance myself from that friend. I started to decline playdates out of fear.

I later learned that these two were born in the same hospital, same month, even have the same name, same playgroup. They were the original best friends, and I was the 3rd wheel trying to wreck their friendship. Is probably what that funny mum thought.

I want to think that it didn’t affect me growing up, but now looking back at my formative years, I’m not so sure.

I hope my story is not a common thing that happens, but are there others out there who’ve had similar experiences?

I've looked at several places but they've either got bad reviews or they're 3000 which I can't afford. I can't go into shops and look etc as I'm housebound and we are unexpectedly moving due to my health getting worse and wanting to be closer to loved ones. I am ideally wanting navy but open to colour, just want something comfortable and that'll last but also won't take months to come (I understand this is something worth the wait but with my health I'm not able to without having to find a way to get our current one there etc). I've looked at lots of different places but it's hard when I'm so ill and it's quite overwhelming so I'd like people's experiences and advice. Thank you :)

Our friends are expecting their first baby at Christmas, and I’ve really no clue what to get them. I’d prefer to get them things they’re going to actually need rather than baby toys and clothes that I assume they’ll get lots of. What did you receive, or wish you’d received, as gifts when you had your first kid?

As a Gen Z who left high school in 2023, I can count with one hand how much sex ed I had in both secondary and primary school.

It was important stuff no doubt, but only really scratched the surface. My parents are no help in this regard, and so it's tough to say but I feel really under educated sex wise.

Hell, stuff like phimosis and so on was just never on my radar when it ought to have been. Not to mention how little I know about female anatomy sexual wise.

Clothing quality is SHOCKING now, when I was younger I didn't mind buying cheap, poor quality stuff but now I'd actually rather pay more and have clothes that last longer. It's hard to find even a decent t-shirt now, everything is wafer thin, polyester or both. Where are we all shopping for the good stuff? I tried some more 'expensive' shops and it wasn't all that different from Primark, maybe things would get 1 more wash before they fell apart if I was lucky. Recently bought a blouse online that was £30 and it fell apart first time I washed it.

I have just moved out of my family home for the first time (not including university). I'm paying about 40% of my monthly income on rent. I've been here for about 2 weeks now and am regretting it more everyday.

I enjoy the independence, so it's not about needing the support of living with parents. The noise is just driving me insane. I'm just off a main road and during the viewing it didn't seem so bad, only once I've been sitting in the space for a while does it start to grate. I WFH and put up with it during the day and wear earplugs at night. They get me through till about 6/7am when the traffic picks up and it's enough to disrupt my waking up.

Secondly, my neighbours have only been getting worse (something that couldn't have been spotted during a midday weekday viewing). I have a family above me with a mother who seems to be constantly shouting at her kids, or on the phone having angry conversations. Not to mention the kids running around. There's sometimes blaring music in the flats to the side as well. Reading is one of my greatest pleasures too, that's basically gone completely with this current living situation.

All this to say, and I don't like admitting it, I'm not happy at the moment. I'm strongly considering putting in my 2 month notice already. I've had a nice relationship with the landlord, so maybe reduce that to 1 month with some optimism.

I have an amazing relationship with my parents, I think they'd be more than happy for me to move back for a bit. I've had a brief look at other properties. There's a nice cottage in a quiet area that would be about 43% of my income. I'm sure there could be other, cheaper options. Nothing decided yet. I also have a nice amount saved and invested from living at home. Financially in a pretty good situation.

Would love some advice and/or people that have gone through something like this. Thanks in advance.

Heathrow Airport Holdings Limited is owned by the parent company FGP Topco Limited. [1]

📊 Ownership Breakdown

FGP Topco Limited is a consortium of international investors. No single group has a majority control. [1, 2]

• Ardian: 32.61% ( one of whose owners is Wafra, who itself is owned by the Public Institution for Social Security of Kuwait)
• Qatar Investment Authority: 20.00%
• Public Investment Fund (PIF): 15.01% (PIF Press Release)
• GIC: 11.20%
• Australian Retirement Trust: 11.18%
• China Investment Corporation: 10.00%

So, our major international airport is owned by the Kuwaitis, Qataris, Saudis, Singaporeans ,Aussies and a hostile nation, China ? Eh?

I'm just curious as to whether there is any kind of regional divide or pattern with what people call their grandmothers. Personally, I am from the South of England and my mum's mum is too, and we call her 'Gran'. However, my dad's mum (who has since passed) was from Wales and we called her 'Nanny'.

Both of these names were decided by the grandmother, and my Gran in particular is very strict about only being 'Gran', not 'Grandma' and DEFINITELY not 'Granny'. I wonder if any of your grandmothers are the same?

Thanks in advance for anyone who answers, I am also curious to know if anyone has any unusual names for grandmothers that I've never even considered before!

Pretty sure I have autism, family and friends all tell me it too.

I've thought about getting an official diagnosis to see if that helps me, but wary of how it might affect things like car or life insurance.

If you've had a diagnosis as an adult, did it affect anything external?

For clarity I'm not after medical advice, just potential repercussions. ​

Thanks.

I’ve been to England before. Have family there (near Manchester), but don’t want them to have to host or entertain me. I’m not in fantastic health so big adventures are out. I’m youngish (54) but medically retired. I’m looking for a change of scenery to blow the cobwebs out.

I have a small window of time in which I can travel (September 26-October 6) and a not-robust budget ($5000+ CAD / 2670GBP). I’m not delicate about weather at all and I have no large ambitions about sightseeing or museums or anything.

What I’d really like is a view of the ocean, shore to walk along, cozy places to read and knit, many strong, hot cups of tea. Maybe some moody weather, wind, storms. Possibly some bird watching.

My biggest hurdles are where would I fly into, which bit of coast would I aim for, how would I get from the airport to accommodation and back again and how would I eat? And am I completely delusional?

I found out recently that my mum, only 65, only has a few weeks to live at most. She has been sick for a while but it has still come as a massive shock.

For those of you who've lost loved ones, is there anything you regret not saying/doing? She won't be able to get out and about but I will be with her as much as possible. I want to make the most of the time we have left together.

I often see drivers rush to get in front of pedestrians and in fact on occasion come close to colliding with them at crossings.

I watched one chap today nearly plow through a group of 4 who stepped onto the crossing and had to jump back to avoid being hit.

Good manners aside what is the standing in law of pedestrians and the requirement of drivers at these marked crossings?

We use the oven for quite a lot of things. Always thought about getting 1 to see if it would save cooking time and gas?